Metal Gear Solid V Ground Zeroes: Demo As A “Luxury” (For Better Or Worse)…

Posted on March 18, 2014 by geelw

So, it’s here and even though it’s been known for a while it was going to be what amounts to nothing but a brief demo with a $30 price tag (and similar to Gran Turismo 5 Prologue in its cost versus brevity factor), some critics have been punching away hard on poor Big Boss/Solid Snake. As I’m not made of money, I’m going to wait for a used copy or trade from a friend to pop up, but I really want to play this just to see that Fox Engine in action, how Kiefer Sutherland works as the voice for Snake (taking over from David Hayter) and the ability to tackle that single (and large) map as many ways as possible. Granted, the one to two hours maximum play time I’m hearing about IS a bit pesky, but I’m gathering most reviewers played through just to complete their posts and aren’t fully appreciating that demo for all its worth. On the other hand, this is a Hideo Kojima game, so perhaps that and the Metal Gear name are carrying that price point into “Hmmmmm…” territory for some writers and players.

That said, the full game (Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain) is still underway as far as development goes, so I do hope the cost of this slice is offset in some manner, be it some exclusive content available to those with save files (on-disc and not DLC so EVERYONE who bought in can see/play it) or something else Kojima and publisher Konami can think up to keep the angrier folks down off their soapboxes. Eh, we’ll see, I suppose. I’m just glad to see a new MGS on a home console after all this time…

Alien Isolation “Creating The Alien” Trailer: Shaping Your Fears Is Tough Work…

Posted on March 13, 2014 by geelw

So, that’s how it’s done, hmmmm. Okay, now we need to see the underwear factory churning out adult-sized diapers with the Alien Isolation logo on them that will be packed in that Collector’s Edition of the game along with a pocket defibrillator and smelling salts. The folks at The Creative Assembly seem to be making the Alien game to end all Alien games because it’s closer to the first Alien film than a few of the more action-packed sequels ever were. Granted, there’s something to be said for those awesome Rebellion-made Alien vs. Predator PC games and yes, a few of the other games in this long running franchise have been quite well done and thrilling. But this may be the first game that feels frightening thanks to it looking to capture what made the original work all too well. Pre-alpha footage means there’s a long way to go before this one’s all wrapped up, folks. I’m betting it’s a big fat face-huggy surprise when it’s all done.

As usual, we’ll see…

WIN FREE STUFF! The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing Steam Codes!

Posted on March 11, 2014 by geelw

Thanks to the awesome Orsolya Toth over at Neocore Games, I have TWO Steam codes for their excellent Action/RPG The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing to give away to TWO lucky winners! NOTE: This is the original version of the game, NOT the Complete Pack (but you can upgrade to that if you like via Steam by buying that additional content if you like the game!) and yes, the game is PC and Macintosh compatible. How do you enter? Well, just FOLLOW the site if you haven’t yet and leave a comment below. I’ll randomly pick two of you and shoot over your codes within 24 hours. No need to leave your email, as we have ways of knowing who you are… (mua-ha-ha-haaa!)

And whether you win or not, you SHOULD support the sequel, The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II over at Necore’s online store. There are some great premiums for folks with funds to spare (you can be in the game!) and the sequel’s MUCH bigger than the original, but costs exactly the same! I’ll be giving the beta of VHII a shot shortly and let you know what’s what with that soon. Stay tuned…

System requirements for the game and official rules for the giveaway are below the jump… Continue reading →

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Delayed Until February 2015 (This is Actually A GOOD Thing)…

Posted on March 11, 2014 by geelw

At the beginning of this year, I’d planned to note here that The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was my early blind pick for Game of the Year, but something told me to hold off on that hyperbole a bit until I saw and played the game at a press event. Well, my not quite psychic powers were on point, as CD Projekt RED sent out a nice open letter this afternoon announcing the game has been pushed back for about a year so all three versions can arrive in tip-top shape.

Get the whole bad news/good news pie in the face below the jump… Continue reading →

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II: If You’re Hungary For More, Come Get Some!

Posted on March 10, 2014 by geelw

Okay, I’m late to the mad monster party thanks to such a massive games backlog that I won’t be seeing some of the bigger titles I downloaded last year until late this year (or next year!), which is pretty sad. But I understand quite a lot of people have this problem thanks to too many bundle sales and low prices on single games that are way too hard to pass up.

Anyway, I bumped up the demo to The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing a few weeks back to “PLAY IT!” status when I was cleaning up my Steam library and realized I’d downloaded but not played it. It hooked me in right away and made me wish it was on more platforms because as great as Steam is, not everyone who’d love this fun and funny action/RPG is playing it.

Of course, me being late to the party means Hungary-based Neocore Games has been a hard at work on a sequel that’s going to be even bigger than the original and they want you to climb aboard the even more comedy-laced monster killing train early:

What was that? You say things were moving too quickly and you want screenshots? Um, okay – here you go:

Feel better now? Good. But wait, there’s MORE… Continue reading →

Game of Thrones S4 Trailer #3: They’re NOT “Secrets” If Everyone Knows Them, You Know…

Posted on March 9, 2014 by geelw

Ah, as usual things are getting interesting out Westeros way and yup, you can expect things to go way up north and way down south for all the houses this season. Still, suspense is the name of the game on this show and I’m only expecting it to deliver the goods on a weekly basis. Granted, topping that Red Wedding will be tricky, but there’s a big wedding this time that’s probably going to have even worse repercussions on a few levels (well, over time). Anyway, April 6 is the big day if you’re not a binge-watching fool who wants to miss out just so you can overdose on the sofa with a box of bonbons and a tablet or phone app in your lap to keep you distracted and still missing out. Eh, “Do you”, as the old saying goes…

More DAYLIGHT? Yeah, You’ll Be Wishing For The Sun, Alright…

Posted on March 8, 2014 by geelw

So, DAYLIGHT will be one reason for me to break down and finally get a PS4, as I love games like this with endless replay value. Jump scares don’t really do much for me, but I do like games that work so well at making you too freaked out to go on that you want to just STOP playing, but someone else in the room or your own stubborn nature makes you push onwards (and not necessarily past that fear, either). I’d missed this video below from January, but as you can see, even Atlus’ own staff and testers are getting broken in (and broken down) quite well:

Yep, I’m playing this with the damn lights ON, thank you much. In newer news, the game will support 3D play out of the case using RealD technology, and PlayStation Multimedia support is also included which means a whole suite of ridiculous options will be on board for those who love messing with people online in a few “fun” ways. Click below the jump for more info!

Continue reading →

Sin City: A Dame to Kill For Trailer: Miller & Rodriguez, Partners In Crime…

Posted on March 6, 2014 by geelw

(thanks, JoBlo Movie Trailers)

Oh, yeah. I loved Sin City, so this trailer for the follow up made me grin a wee bit too much. This is good even though it took so long for this to get made that some of the principals who were in the previous film look a little long in the tooth even with a bunch of prosthetic makeup and fine fancy lighting doing their thing so well. Still, it’s all good because Miller and Rodriguez are doing it up as it should be done and all is right in the world (well, in that weird way things roll in Sin City). Anyway, August 22 is when this one’s let loose like a pack of starving dogs, so make sure you’re in its path and welcoming that first bite…

Akiba’s Trip 2: Undead & Undressed PS3, Vita Bound This Summer (THANKS, Xseed!)

Posted on March 5, 2014 by geelw

Well, now… this is cool news. I’d been meaning to check out one of the imports when I got the chance, but now I don’t need to thanks to Xseed Games (again!). They’re releasing the second game, AKIBA’S TRIP 2 in North America as AKIBA’S TRIP: Undead & Undressed, on the PlayStation 3 em and PlayStation Vita in summer 2014. The game is an adventure game/action RPG that pits you up against modern day vampiric creatures called “Synthisters” in a extremely well-rendered digital version of Tokyo’s world-famous electronics district, Akihabara where beating their clothes off and exposing them to sunlight is the only means of destroying them.

Yeah, it’s VERY strange in that manner some of the more offbeat Japanese games can be, so hats off to Xseed for grabbing this for localization. Funny, it actually took me until a few minutes ago to see that the title is a fun play on words, as “Akiba” is the abbreviation for Akihabara and “Strip” is just what you’ll be doing to those vampires in the game. Ha! Well, this one also goes on the radar for a look-see later on when more info comes out – stay tuned…

South Park: The Stick of Truth Now Available: Obsidian’s Got A Solid Hit, It Seems…

Posted on March 4, 2014 by geelw

I normally avoid reading other reviews until after I write my own, but the two I’ve seen for this game are pretty favorable and only knock the game for some bugs and technical issues that need patching up and some repetition in attack animations (a common complaint for RPGs for ages). This bodes well for developer Obsidian and publisher Ubisoft, who rescued the game from oblivion after original publisher THQ folded a few years back. Now, if only Obsidian could get a few more RPGs made using a similar combat engine (but a different visual style), I’d be even happier. Well, this goes on the buy list and in the “Play It!” queue (which has grown by a few too many titles as of late).